MP Insults Pilot, Pilot Threatens To Sue

The problem with Indians, as I see it, is that we are thin-skinned and overly sensitive to slightest of slights. For example:

The row over an MP being asked to get off an aircraft by its pilot deepened on Sunday as the former refused to tender an apology and threatened the pilots' body to "do what it wants to do".

"There is no question of any apology from my side. I have done noting wrong," Indian Muslim League MP Abdul Wahab, who was accused of allegedly using foul language against an Indian Airlines pilot, said.

"Let the pilots association do what it wants to do," the Kerala MP said.

The Indian Commercial Pilots Association (ICPA) had said they would file a defamation suit against Wahab for allegedly calling the pilot a "glorified driver" and asked him to tender an unconditional apology.

Yes, MP Abdul Wahab is probably a jerk, but calling the pilot a "glorified driver" hardly merits a riposte let alone a defamation suit. In fact, the pilot should have just furnished an insult of his own. End of problem.

But in all honesty, the MP is not far off the mark when he called the pilot a "glorified driver", because it is true. A pilot's job is to pick up passengers, go from point A to point B, and disgorge passengers. Repeat. Aside from more skill involved, what's the difference between a pilot and a bus driver? And I'm not being insulting, but someone who loves aviation and even tried his hand at being a pilot. I had no allusions about being a pilot then, and I don't now. So the ICPA should just leave it alone.

Indian Labor: Whimisical Unions

The Airports Authority Employees' Union (AAEU), a CPI-M backed outfit, has decided to call off its 'strike'. The AAEU was protesting the closures of Bangalore and Hyderabad airports, which are being replaced by privately-operated airports, which would cause massive job losses and the thinning of union ranks.

This brief PTI article doesn't say why the 'strike' was called off, but I suspect one of two scenarios: first, the government, in its infinite foolishness, gave concessions to AAEU, the type that one regrets later; second, the union, whose last strike was wholly unpopular, decided not to raise the ire of passengers, who they treat as burdens rather than customers.

When I first heard the AAEU was going on strike, my reflexive response was for the government to fire each and every one of them. I'm not anti-union, and I do believe the AAEU has legitimate concerns, but unions should not be allowed to strike on a whim. Mechanisms should be adopted to address the grievances of unions, including mediation boards and collective bargaining agreements.